The International Day to Protect Education from Attack was established in 2020. Russell, UNICEF Executive Director Virginia Gamba, United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict Stefania Giannini, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Education Yalda Hakim, Australian broadcast journalist, news presenter Rosario Diaz Garavito, CEO of The Millennials Movement. Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of EAA, SDG Advocate His Excellency Nana-Akufo-Addo, President of Ghana Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO Her Royal Highness Maria Teresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Catherine M. Participants and contributors to this year’s observance, titled ‘Act Now to Protect Education from Attack,’ included H.H. TRACE, an easy to use, single point, open access portal will collect, visualise, and provide curated analysis of data on attacks on education, generating reliable, timely data on attacks on education to be freely shared. Today will see the unveiling of the Track Attacks on Education (TRACE) Data Portal, a new tool designed to fill a global gap for reliable quality data created by a partnership between the EAA, UNESCO, KoBo Toolbox and in close collaboration with GCPEA and the QCRI. “Data collection to inform policymaking is fundamental…data on grave violations informs the Secretary General every year to list or not list parties for attacks on schools and to take relevant action”. She also underlined the key role of data in tackling the scourge of impunity. Virginia Gamba, Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations for Children and Armed Conflict, reinforced the message that “politicians should match political principles with action”, and called on nations to implement the UN Security Council Resolution 2601, which was passed last year and reaffirms the right to education and calls on states to provide protection. Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, chairperson of the global education foundation Education Above All (EAA), who performed a key role in the observance of the third International Day, underlined the importance of using innovative methods learned during the pandemic to reach out of school children, and urged the global community to move the conversation forwards – “in the absence of international action, how do we move the global needle?”, she asked, citing the need for concrete action to hold perpetrators of attacks on education to justice. The military use of schools and universities more than doubled. DRC, Mali, and the State of Palestine were the countries most affected, while Burkina Faso, Colombia, Ethiopia, Myanmar, and Nigeria also witnessing an increase. There were more than 5,000 documented attacks on education between 2020-2021, with more than 9,000 students and educators abducted, arrested, injured, or killed. While highlighting the particular problem of attacks on education across West Africa, he called for three courses of action on a global scale – to enhance advocacy for action to garner political will to underline political commitment, particularly through the establishment of regional coalitions for action so momentum is transformed into action and by mobilising finance, calling on parties to support diverse funding channels and make education a national priority.Īccording to the Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA), global attacks on education are on the rise, with African countries particularly affected. While citing education as “the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world” and acknowledging that “we cannot eliminate poverty if citizens are uneducated”, he reminded audiences that “if we do not act now some half of the world’s current population will not have the skills they need” for the future. The president of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, came together with guests at the UNESCO HQ in Paris on Friday 9th September to mark the International Day to Protect Education from Attack, where leaders from the education and development world gathered together to discuss tangible solutions to rising attacks on education.
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